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Indiana Parks Alliance

The Indiana Parks Alliance (IPA) is a charitable organization that supports and advocates for Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) State Parks and Nature Preserves, and the people they serve through education, promotion, fundraising and assistance for local friends groups.

We consider ourselves an organization of “doers” who advocate for and promote these public lands and the opportunities they provide. That’s why our partners are so important to us. IPA integrates their objectives into one agenda to create a unified network of action for the natural and cultural resources and facilities in our Indiana State Parks and Indiana Nature Preserves. Our partners include state parks, state-owned nature preserves, the Indiana Natural Resources Foundation, local friends groups and YOU as a member!

What We Do

Advocacy

Research

Education

Action

What You Should Know
We do not raise funds to acquire land; there are other organizations that focus their attention in that area. We do not raise funds for daily operational costs or routine maintenance for Indiana State Parks or state-owned Nature Preserves. We believe these should continue to be provided through user fees and Indiana’s State Budget process. We DO work to enhance the experiences of visitors, protect our natural and cultural resources and maintain a Hoosier legacy for generations to come.

SAVE OUR ASH TREES!

The Indiana Parks Alliance is working with Indiana State Parks and Nature Preserves to protect 100 mature, seed producing ash trees across the state to save this native species for the future.

The Emerald Ash Borer is an invasive insect that has killed tens of millions of ash trees since it first came to the U.S. in 2002. As of March 2017, EAB has been documented in all 92 counties in Indiana. Within the next ten years, 95% of all ash trees in Indiana will have been lost!

Join The Campaign!100% of every donation will go to the Save Our Ash Trees program. The average cost of treating one mature ash tree is $200, so we have set our campaign goal at $20,000. We need your help!

What is an Emerald Ash Borer? How does it kill an ash tree? Why should we care? How can I help?
Watch this short, 5-minute, video produced by Indiana Parks Alliance to answer those important questions.

President’s Message

IT’S A STARTBy Tom Hohman

In 1904 American chestnut trees at the New York Zoological Park started dying from an unknown disease. This disease was eventually found to be a fungus that had somehow been newly introduced to the United States.

The American chestnut was one of the largest trees in Eastern woodlands, sometimes reaching diameters of 10’ or more. They were also one of the most important trees for wildlife, as well as for the human residents of those woodlands.

Today America’s ash trees are facing a similar threat. The emerald ash borer (EAB) was first discovered in Michigan in 2002, and in Indiana in 2004. Despite efforts to contain it, the introduced pest has rapidly spread. As with the American chestnut and the fungus that killed it, our native ashes have little resistance to this introduced pest.

There is one big difference between the chestnut blight and emerald ash borer. There is a very effective treatment for trees that will protect it from EAB. This insecticide kills the larvae burrowing within the tree, while having minimal effect on other insects. The only real downside is that trees have to be individually treated, making it impractical to treat large volumes of trees in a woodland. (The insecticide is not a neonicotinoid, a class of insecticide that is harmful to many pollinators.)

Although we can’t save all ash trees, we can treat some of our largest trees, many of which are 2’-3’ in diameter. While doing this will enable our children and grandchildren to have the opportunity to see these giants, it isn’t the only benefit. These remnant trees will act as a seed source, sowing the next generation of ash trees. While EAB is not going away, the hope is that some of this next generation will have a natural resistance to EAB. Nature will provide the final answer, but in the meantime, we must help her along.

While it is too late to save remnant ash trees in parts of the state that have already been devastated by this pest, there are still areas where it is not too late. IPA hopes to raise sufficient funds to treat at least 200 trees at various state parks and state owned nature preserves. We need your help. Please donate to this cause today.